installing parabolics

[O'Brien]

howdy friends. my new set of parabolics and OME shocks should be on my doorstep when i get home today THANKS ROVERS NORTH.

i'm looking for your tips on installation. i know from time to time people have experienced trouble with tilting after install, or stuff not lining up correctly. I want to make sure i get this done this weekend, and get it done right. my 109 wagon is my daily driver, and a man's got to get to work! (only to buy more rover stuff haha!)

anyway, walk me through the process friends, step by step if you would. pictures are great as well. i've got my green bible, but i figured it we could have a great thread about it, it would help me and others in the future.

so where do i start?

PS: Momo, KingSlug & LaneRover, or anyone else close by, you're all welcome to head to sunny Pasadena this weekend for some beers and wrenching if you're so inclined!

cheers!

[leafsprung]

Bushings

Torch the bushings out, then use a sawsall to cut the outer metal sleave. Have fun, one of those jobs that is largely unpleasant.

[Momo]

Yeah, what Ike said!! Also make sure your U-bolts are long enough and they are the right diameter for the bottom plates.

As for this weekend, I'll send you a PM...

PS- NICE grab on the Avatar dude! Tintin, right?

[Jim-ME]

When I had to replace my rear end I had all new shackles, bolts and U-bolts which made the job so much easier and less expensive in the long run.
Jim

[LaneRover]

Just in case things take a REALLY long time I would do one axle at a time. That way you won't necessarily have a Rover up on Jackstands late Sunday night!

Brent

[Mercedesrover]

Don't know if you're changing frame bushing or not. Like Ike said, it's a suck-job at best. Maybe the worst thing you'll have to do on your Rover. Both getting old ones out and getting new ones in. Without proper tools you can expect to spend a whole day doing those alone. With a torch, sawzall, GOOD air chisel, ball joint press and a BFH you can do it in a few hours. It might help to be drunk.

For springs alone, RN should have sent you U-bolts. Blast and paint them as they'll rust very quickly if you don't. Like Jim said, if your shackles and bolts look at all questionable, spring for new ones. Trust me, for the $125 you'll spend, you'll thank us in the morning. Buy the set of frame bushings too as some if not all of the bolts will be stuck in them.

Remove the wheels, set the truck down on wooden blocks under the axles. Two floor jacks (or a lift if you have one) works better than one. Use the jacks under the frame to lift the truck just enough to take the weight off the axles.

No big tricks, though...Un-bolt those bolts that will un-bolt, sawzall the others. Drive the cut off bolts out of the frame bushings if you can, torch out the ones that you can't and replace those frame bushings. A GOOD air chisel (Snap-on PH-50) is the only thing you can use to try and drive out the bolts stuck in the frame bushings. If that doesn't work, it's the torch or a ball-joint press. Use whatever implements of distruction you have to push, smash, cut, drive, burn the centers out of the frame bushings. When you're left with just the outside sleeve, cut through them with a sawzall and knock the sleeve clear.

Pressing in the frame bushings is almost as much fun as driving the old ones out. Make sure the frame hole is clean, put the new bushings in the freezer and work fast with your BFH once it's cold. If it feels like it's getting very hard before the bushing is all the way in, STOP and drive the bushing back out. Re-freeze bushing while you clean out the hole better. If you don't do this, the bushing will get stuck in the frame before it's all the way in and you'll be f*^#@d. Trust me!!!! If the bushing doesn't feel like it's going to go all the way in, STOP, drive it back out and start over. Freeze the bushing again and clean out the hole some more!!!! I CAN'T STRESS THIS POINT ENOUGH!!!!

When you've got the springs out and frame bushings with a hole in the center, repeat in reverse. That's the easy part.

Have the proper tools. Order all the shackles, bolts and frame bushings. If this is the first time you've done this, order three front and three rear bushings. You may just screw one up trying to get it in. Have enough alchohol on hand. Call some mechanically adapt friends over. Have enough alchohol for them too.

Have fun!!!

Oh yeah, have lots of sawzall blades on hand!

jim

[chester rides again]

i did this over Thanksgiving

I was able to do my rear axle over 2 days in November. We only got the rear done. Granted it was my brother-in-law doing the work, while I watched the kids, but it goes to prove that someone with almost no mechanical skills can do the job! Just make sure you PB Blast everything a few days before and get all the fixings you might need. NAPA had extra spring bolts and U-bolts.

Anyway, we had the hardest time removing the spring bolts. In hind sight, I should have just cut them off. I'm not sure about cutting out the bushings, since they didn't give us much of a problem. Come to think of it, maybe they did - I'll haved to check on that this spring...

NOTE: The parabolics may change the angle of the drive shaft! My Wise Owl parabolics pulled the drive shaft down to where it was just touching the lower part of the hole on the frame. We had to losen the whole thing up once the wheels were on and then jack the front of the pumpkin up to gain some clearance. They do make a shim for this - go to a spring shop and they have them. The owner typically said you use between 2 and 4 degree shims - depending on the spring mfg. recommendations.

We also had to bore out the holes in the bottom plate to fit the new and slightly larger u-bolts. Wise Owl included the u-bolts.That said, this is definitely a weekend job if you get started early and have everything you might need on hand.

I've got all the fixings ready for the front so that when the weather finally breaks I can get them done.

Good Luck!

[O'Brien]

well sounds like i'll be doing some more shopping tomorrow at work then. i'll be calling our other british friends here in southern california for frame bushings, shackles and bolts. i've got a load of sawzall blades, but i will for sure have to get more beer before saturday. hitting the hard stuff early in the day has to wait for march 17th!

i'm good just getting frame bushings right, as the parabolics already have the bushings installed in them?

jim - great tip on the freezing, wouldn't have thought of that, but it makes a lot of sense.

great tips from everybody, keep em coming!

I'll also be taking pictures this weekend, but i still haven't found my damn usb cable, better buy one of those tomorrow too.

[junkyddog11]

Not that I'd recomend getting under a truck whilst consuming alcohol, but make sure you get it all done while you are drunk, 'cause it really sucks trying to finish it up hungover.....

[scott]

my rears took less than 2 hours, the front over 6. lots of bushing melting and respricating saw blade changes and yes a steady flow of beer. but the ride is worth it.